Module 1

One of the concepts that Woolfolk discusses is the qualities of good teaching. Under this section, she presents three classrooms that have effective teachers and then explains what good teaching is, including the models and measures of effective teaching. The effective teacher quality that stuck out to me was being reflective. This means that teachers “constantly think back over situations to analyze what they did and why, and to consider how they might improve learning for their students” (9). Last semester, I completed a service learning project in Elim Adult Services where I helped guide students with disabilities through their educational and vocational tasks. A part of this project involved setting goals and trying to accomplish them. I also had to complete frequent reflections of my work as I tried to meet my goals. For example, I had a goal to help a student improve on her social skills, so I would reflect on the 10-minute lessons I gave for meeting that goal. This was a valuable learning experience because it helped me improve my instructional strategies with a focus student. I also intend to keep reflecting on my work in the future, so that I can be more effective in my job. Another concept that she discusses is the mindset of beginning chapters, which is the last part of the section about good teaching. According to Woolfolk, these teachers shift from a concern about themselves to a focus on the students’ needs. She also mentions the “reality shock” that they experience when they take their first job. I have experienced both of these this past year through my field experiences. In the fall, I was observing a special education classroom with the intention of being a special education teacher. After talking with the cooperating teacher, however, I realized that I displayed discomfort when speaking in front of the whole class which influenced my decision to work as a paraprofessional instead. As for the shift of concerns, I had to ask myself how I was doing personally and how the students were progressing during my service learning project. Although I have not completed the full shift yet, I now have an idea of what my mindset should be in my future job. The last concept that Woolfolk discusses is the use of research to understand and improve learning. Under this section, she defines and explains the use of correlation studies, experimental studies, single-subject experimental studies, clinical interviews, ethnography, and quantitative vs qualitative research, which I will elaborate on. “Case studies and ethnographies are examples of qualitative research” and “correlational and experimental types of research generally are quantitative…” (18). In other words, qualitative research involves gathering anecdotal and personal data while quantitative research focuses on recording measurements and computations of the students’ progress. This is used when creating Functional Behavior Analyses for addressing a student’s problem behavior. The qualitative research would involve interviewing the parents and other teachers, as well as collecting written records of the student’s progress. An A-B-C chart would be used for quantitative research as a record of the time, causes, and consequences of the target behavior. I had to complete an A-B-C chart for one of my SPED classes by observing the target behaviors of a student I was working with in Elim Adult Services. I really liked conducting research this way because it provided a clear visual of what the student’s behavior was addressing. Since I will be a paraprofessional, I may have to conduct this kind of research often in order to help the teacher address their needs.